Gamma 1 & Gamma 2 Coming Soon to S.H.Figuarts! Interview with the Development Leader of S.H.Figuarts SUPER HERO!!
Dragon Ball Super: SUPER HERO has finally been released in Japan! And now, new characters Gamma 1 and Gamma 2 have also made their off-screen debuts in S.H.Figuarts as posable figures! Preorders are currently open as of June 11 on the Tamashii Web Shop!
But it's not just the new faces who are getting the S.H.Figuarts treatment—"Piccolo SUPER HERO", "Goku SUPER HERO", and "Vegeta SUPER HERO" figures will also be available from June 18, and an "Ultimate Gohan SUPER HERO" is scheduled for release in July!!
With so many characters from SUPER HERO coming to the S.H.Figuarts label, we interviewed the development leader for all six at BANDAI SPIRITS, Mr. "Motto" Okamoto, to hear all about the highlights of their Gamma 1, Gamma 2, and Gohan figures!
BANDAI SPIRITS / "Motto" Okamoto
From Final Form Cooler to the S.H.Figuarts series,
Mr. Okamoto has worked on a large number of figures,
including Android 21, Krillin -Battle Clothes-, Gohan -Battle Clothes-, and more.
If you want to hear all about his overflowing love for Dragon Ball,
be sure to check out our previous interview with him
in the related articles section at the bottom of this page!
Meeting New Characters for the First Time!
——What were your first impressions of Gamma 1 and Gamma 2?
Okamoto: The first time I saw them was in July 2021 at Comic-Con@Home 2021. Their design had all the balance of Toriyama's more recent work, overall very lean and trim, and I thought they were super cool. I also liked how the big numbers printed on their chests and the number of fins on their heads correspond to their designations as 1 and 2 so that it's easy to tell which is which.
——Did your impressions of them change at all after their mannerisms and voices were revealed in the trailer?
Okamoto: Throughout Dragon Ball, there aren't many villains who are clearly just straight-up, rotten-to-the-core "bad guys", and I got that same vibe from Gamma 1 and Gamma 2—that there's more to them than just being "villains"—and for that reason I thought that they fit into Dragon Ball's world really well. I also really liked how even though they're partners, their personalities are complete opposites, which is also very Dragon Ball-esque.
On the movie's official website,
Gamma 1 is introduced as being calm, collected, and fiercely loyal,
while Gamma 2 is said to be easy-going, comical, and energetic!
Be sure to see for yourself how they play off one another in the movie!
Highlights of S.H.Figuarts Gamma 1 & Gamma 2!
——What were some aspects of S.H.Figuarts Gamma 1 and Gamma 2 that you paid special attention to during the development process?
Okamoto: We wanted to honor Toriyama's lean designs for Gamma 1 and Gamma 2 first and foremost, but we also needed to fit in all the joints and shape the models themselves so as to not interfere with movement and posability. So something we took special care with was trying to find the best balance between those two aspects.
Mr. Okamoto even showed us special prototypes of the figures!
A great deal of design and ingenuity went into maintaining their slim profiles without sacrificing functionality.
Okamoto: As for their posability, we wanted to make sure that fans could use the figures to recreate the poses they'll see in the movie. We had to take special care around their shoulder areas to ensure that their signature poses from the first key visual poster could be recreated.
Okamoto: When you raise their arms up, the insides of their shoulder joints move forward, and the gap that opens up as a result is hidden by the rounded shoulder parts, so it never looks unnatural. And for the wrists, we worked with the sculptor to get both the pivot point and shape just right.
The arms pull outwards when you raise them up
so that the capes don't get in the way of your poses!
——Both figures come with attachable gun accessories too, right?
Okamoto: There are actually two gun accessories: one for when it's holstered and one for when they're holding it. We wanted to make them both the same size, so we did a lot of testing to try to work out what size worked best for both situations.
Okamoto: We made it so that the joints show as little as possible when they're taking the guns, and we didn't want the empty holster gaps to be visible when they're pointing them because it looks uncool, so we positioned them so that the holes are harder to see.
Mr. Okamoto also told us they designed the guns
so that they look cool when you're playing with them too!
Highlights of S.H.Figuarts Ultimate Gohan SUPER HERO!
——Ultimate Gohan also appears in the new film, but can you tell us about what went into his S.H.Figuarts design and development?
Okamoto: This Ultimate Gohan is a completely new model that utilizes the posable structure that we implemented with our S.H.Figuarts Super Saiyan 4 Goku figure, which proved to be very popular. We've made it so that you can recreate all the high-energy battle scenes from the movie!
Okamoto: His shoulder joints can rotate a full 360 degrees, so you can recreate his pose from the first key visual where his arms are thrusting out in front of him. And thanks to that design choice, you can also raise his arms up with no problems, so you can make some really strong and impressive poses, different stances, lots of attacks and special moves, and they'll all look super cool.
Okamoto: His shoes have been designed to match their new appearance in the movie, but we've also included a bit of new figure tech on our end. To make it so that the toe part doesn't stand out too much when it's rotated upward, we've given that section a more natural profile. That probably sounds like it's way too fine a detail to worry about, but we really wanted this figure to be able to capture all aspects of Gohan's performance in the movie as seamlessly as possible.
The shoe close-up above is of S.H.Figuarts Piccolo SUPER HERO,
which also features Ultimate Gohan's new toe modeling techniques!
S.H.Figuarts Gamma 1 and S.H.Figuarts Gamma 2 also come with bonus parts that can be used with S.H.Figuarts Ultimate Gohan SUPER HERO! Gamma 1 comes with a head part to turn Gohan into his Super Saiyan form and a new facial expression, and Gamma 2 comes with a Gohan head where he's wearing his glasses as well as his signature cape!! And according to Mr. Okamoto, they've all been designed so that fans can recreate the impressive scenes from the trailer videos! Who wouldn't want to be able to puta freeze-frame of those battle scenes on display?!
——Before we finish up, do you have anything to say to the fans out there anxiously awaiting the release of these new figures?
Okamoto: Whether you've already rushed out to see the new movie or you're planning to check it out soon, I'm sure all of us can agree that Gamma 1 and Gamma 2 are sure to be fan favorites! We at the S.H.Figuarts label are looking forward to releasing even more figures of various movie characters besides just these two, and we'll be working our absolute hardest to make sure all their charm and awesomeness is represented as authentically as possible, so please look forward to them and consider picking them up to recreate all your favorite scenes!
——Thank you very much!
Well, you heard him, everyone! Be sure to check out Dragon Ball Super: SUPER HERO and then relive all the action from the comfort of your own home with the S.H.Figuarts series figures!
ⓒBIRD STUDIO/SHUEISHA
ⓒ2022 DRAGON BALL SUPER Film Partners
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